Voir Dire: To Speak the Truth
by lalunaticscribe
Summary: Sequel to Savoir-Faire. "They are the curses against Kalos's invaders, and the healers of the land. They do not terrorise. They remain according to their own rules... Do not strike a Combee hive if you cannot handle the Vespiquen within." - Marguerite Linden du Bois, Ph. D., L'École Normale Supérieure d'Illumis, on Fairy Tale Girls and Hex Maniacs. Pilot chapter.
1. Prologue: Entrée en vigueur

_**Voir-Dire : To Speak the Truth**_

_**Sequel to Savoir-Faire: To Know and To Do.**_

_**An LLS Production**_

* * *

**Prologue : Entrée en vigueur**

"Châtaignier proposed to take you," a professor I had for a module in university mentioned on the day of my graduation. "You'll be working under Châtaignier Ancolie if you accept."

In my younger and more vulnerable years, Lumiose City had fascinated me from across the Mélancolie Path, a bastion safe from the wrath of those spectres of monsters that roamed around the Tripartite area between Lumiose and Dendemille. Having moved from Dendemille Town to the capital of the Kalos region in pursuit of _le baccalauréat_ and subsequent degrees, I quickly found myself disillusioned somewhat, and entirely more fascinated by the moral complexity that surrounded the lawlessness between the Lavarre Nature Trail, Brun Way and Mélancolie Path. It might be a truism that justice is the font of the common man; the rule seemed to be completely absent in the triangle outside Lumiose.

Were it not for the words of a professor in _L'École Normale __Supérieure__ d'Illumis_ conducting a keynote speech at _L'Université __Lumière__ de Kalos, _I would be lost still. She was inspiring, especially since she debunked Professor Oak's thesis of Pokémon-human cooperation so quickly.

That day when I came home to a miniature apartment in Lumiose, Sibyl leapt up to hug me. She made soup for dinner, and mentioned how she got a job at the _avocat commis d'office__._ Which was when I knew that public defending was a calling. The year of my graduation with my JD, the Double Function Act was passed. Sibyl headed the public defenders' office. I began our jobs as a public defender.

"Gilles and Sibyl Moreau," I had reported proudly that day. "Attorneys in Law, Human and Pokémon. Reporting for duty."

We are Gilles and Sibyl Moreau, sometime cabbie and sometimes Attorneys in Law (Human and Pokémon). No fixed address. Currently speeding away from the witch du Bois, Marguerite Linden.

Yes, there was a long story behind it. The day it started was the day that Sibyl was asking questions.

_« Why are we doing this? » _Sibyl demanded mentally. Actual sounds had long deserted my partner sometime around our _troisième _year when she finally got her telepathy down.

"The average taxi driver earns more per year than a lawyer, good to supplement," I turned a corner. I tried not to think that she had a point. Given that Sibyl had been the voice of my common sense since we escaped from Anistar City, it was rather hard.

_« And it has nothing to do with trying not to become a bloodsucking vampire in the metaphorical fashion, » _Sibyl concluded as she flicked her tail, perched as she was in the vehicle commander's seat.

"It's good. The office gets customers through us, we go out find people who need a public defender's services..." I elaborated. "Taxi drivers is a nice way to get around undetected in Lumiose. No one notices us."

_« Until they realise that the guy driving them around is a lawyer. »_

"Public defender," I defended as I went down North Boulevard, stopping at a flag from a woman.

The door creaked open. She got in. A Lucario was sitting in the cab after she got in, with a Darkrai hanging around the pair.

The door closed.

"Thanks for choosing Lumi Cab!" My fake cheerfulness masked the fact that my old university advisor was sitting in my cab at the moment, and my trepidation at seeing possibly the most dangerous woman in Kalosian academia around me. "The base fare's seven hundred and ten Poké. Want a ride?"

"Monsieur Moreau," Dr Marguerite Linden du Bois greeted me. "Sibyl. The Sycamore Institute, _s'il vous plaît_."

"Erm, I'm supposed to be-"

"Yes, I called your dispatch for you."

She was creepy, that's for sure. I started out, the meter ticking as I moved to Lumiose traffic. "So, why'd you need to pull the creepy? Not that you don't have my Holo Caster signature or anything..."

Blue eyes glimmered in my rear-view mirror. "Call it a premonition. A warning, if you will. You are the resident expert on Tripartite politics and law, and you will be needed."

I touched my red hair. After dyeing it for so long already, it still reminded me that, no matter what makeup I wore, what saloons I visited, or what contact lenses I donned, there was a remnant somewhere of the Trainer I was. "You need a Tripartite expert."

"I was... involved in the recent matter of the SS Azur."

I swallowed, and Sibyl's long white ears twitched. "You _arrested_ the Morelle head? Are you insane?!"

"It was the only option at the time. His guards were defeated at great cost," _la __sorcière__ du Bois_ seemed like some gloating figure at the back of my cab. Given that she wore the black trench-coat dress from "His niece, a Pokémorph, is under my custody currently."

"I don't see her around," I defended, though my skin was crawling.

"I hardly believe that anyone would attack her in the heart of Lumiose City."

"So?" I asked. "What's this? Pokémorphs exist all the time."

"She's a Ghost-type Pokémorph," the witch crossed her legs. Dr du Bois might look nondescript, but her personality was arresting. "Pocket Monsters Morphology-Exhibiting Individuals, also known as Pokémorphs, that conforms with Saule's theory of divergent evolution. You are aware that many Pokémorphs are involved in the struggle over the Tripartite. The heiress of one of the Cent-Feuilles houses shall become a great asset."

I nodded. "So, which is she? Fairy Tale Girl or Hex Maniac?"

"Uncertain."

"Might not be so uncertain if the Raiponce or Millepertuis finds out." The pieces clicked. "You mean... they're coming _here_?"

Sibyl threw a telepathic slap at my head. « _Obviously, you idiot! __Achillée Morelle being arrested means that whoever gets the girl controls the Maison de Morelle!__»_

As I absorbed the rather far-reaching implications, we reached the Sycamore Laboratory, where there was a bevy of picketers assembled.

Dr du Bois got out. "Be careful, Gilles."

"What?" I started. "I'm always careful, Dr du Bois. But... this is serious, isn't it? The Morelle changing leadership?"

"Achillée Morelle is arrested, leaving a girl as head of the Morelle family. You tell me, M. Moreau."

I was silent. "Damn. Better tell Sibyl to prepare for gangland warfare?"

"Well, we are discussing the Coumarine and Lumiose Gym Leaders taking on the Morelle's underlings," she answered lightly. "I suppose, yes."

"And do I get backup?"

She smiled, and walked into the Institute after paying me. Dammit.

« _Are we going to take this?_ » Sibyl asked. « _We have nothing to do with this._ »

I stopped at a red light before the car came on Sibyl's side towards us.

Glass splintered, steel bent, and a psychic barrier formed as I grabbed my Meowstic and threw myself out of the door, taking off my seatbelt at the same time. My skull thudded on the side-walk, and I fell still.

"Uhh," I groaned as my cab thudded and engines howled. "Engine."

A _click_, and the howl from one fell silent, echoing with a mountain of sirens. I looked back to the car; no driver.

"Are cars supposed to drive themselves?" I muttered, before a shadow passed over the wreckage and I glimpsed...

The shadow passed. I blinked, trying to shake the image of hypnotic gold eyes and the fact that her tiny companion had just flung a car at me, uncaring of anyone else in order to murder a district attorney.

Sirens echoed, and I heard voices.

"Jennies," I moaned. Surely, it was reductionistic and rather misogynistic to call Traffic Police that, and the witch would have skinned me were she around, but my skull hurt.

A Meowstic was usually regarded, as a Psychic-type, too sensitive to be near a traffic accident. Still, the sight of the Constraint Pokémon floating serenely out of the taxi was sufficient to stop the oncoming traffic police. They certainly fell silent.

_« It's alright, » _came Sibyl's communication. « _He's fine. »_

"The passenger?" the Officer Jenny blinked.

A white finger. « _He's the driver. »_

I heaved a sigh of relief, a few auburn strands coming out of my scalp. My flat cap hit the dusty ground. "Damn that crap! My taxi! Sibyl, my taxi!"

_« ...you'll be fine, Gilles. »_

"I'll need your license, sir," Jenny offered, accepting the plastic card. "Name?"

"Gilles Moreau. Taxi driver with Lumi Cab." I waved, unwilling to explain my job scope.

"And... you?" Officer Jenny asked the Meowstic.

_Sibyl Moreau. Attorney in Law._

"Really?" Jenny blinked. "Last name... you know each other?"

Meowstic and human looked at each other. "Uh, yeah," I admitted. "She's my Pokémon."

"Okay... we're going to have to ask you some questions, too," Jenny allowed.

"Erm," I said. "She's also my lawyer, and I'm hers. And we work at the _avocat commis d'office_. Could we just represent each other?"

"Mr Moreau, your Pokémon and you are going to have to remain with the other-" Officer Jenny did a double-take. "Where's the other driver?"

Sibyl looked towards me. I shook my head, cradling it. I didn't want to think about the fact that a Fairy Tale Girl just tried to murder me in broad daylight.

At least, not just yet. First I had to locate Marguerite Linden du Bois, and strangle her.

* * *

"..._c'est très belle_," I commented to myself, considering the streets of Lumiose from its tallest point, smack in the middle of Centrico Plaza.

_La ville des lumières_, Illumis, or Lumiose City. The centre of Kalos, the site of the Lumiose siege lifting by the hands of Jeanne la Pucelle, and possibly, once, the centre of the civilised world. Depending on who you asked.

"It's a nice day," I reflected to myself, as I saw smoke gathering in the distance. My legs dangled over the edge of the platform at the top, the winds at my altitude buffeting them. It was cold. "Altair, Darkrai, Poucet. What do you think?"

My Lucario sniffed, warily keeping himself away from the edge and the winds. _The sunrise is better._

_Beautiful... _Darkrai sighed. _Beyond imagination. Why do I see five great pillars over the city?_

"Those are the obelisks that stand in five points of Lumiose, leading to the Prism Tower here in the middle," I explained. "You see, old beliefs place Lumiose City on the leylines of the Kalos Empire. As Lumiose City grew, so did the influence of its four internal streets: Vernal, Estival, Autumnal and Hibernal Avenues. Lumiose City became a place for all comers, its traditional five great entrances situated that all roads in Kalos would lead to Lumiose sooner or later. To bless each path from the five corners into the heart of Kalos, Lumiose, a coloured plaza and an obelisk to symbolise the sun shining on its path was built. It was a hope, a symbol that all paths would lead to Lumiose. Rouge, Jaune, Verte, Bleu and Magenta Plaza were some of the first sites that all travellers would pass through. Then, Lumiose City finally grew too big, and a great wall grew around Lumiose. During the Empoleon era, the then-Emperor of the Kalosian ordered that the walls of Lumiose be opened back to its, the five plazas to show that Lumiose had not forgotten the rest of the region. This place... had always been the true heart of Kalosian power, and the centre of Kalos... _la luminosité éternelle, c'est Illumis._"

An accordion began to play, and I took the time to listen to one of the great classics.

_Sous le ciel d'Illumis, s'envole une chanson,  
Hum __H__um..  
Elle est née d'aujourd'hui __d__ans le c__œ__ur d'un gar__ç__on..._

_Sous le ciel d__'Illumi__s, __m__archent des amoureux,  
Hum Hum...  
Leur bonheur se construit, __s__ur un air fait pour eux..._

_Sous le pont de Bercy, __u__n philosophe assis.  
Deux musiciens, quelques badauds,  
__p__uis les gens par milliers... !_

_Sous le ciel d__'Illum__is, __j__usqu'au soir vont chanter,  
Hum Hum...  
L'hymne d'un peuple épris,  
De sa vieille cite..._

_Pr__è__s de __Place Jaune__,  
Parfois couve un drame...  
Oui mais à __Verte__,  
Tout peut s'arranger...  
Quelques rayons __d__u ciel d'__é__t__é,  
L'accordéon__d__'un marinier,  
L'espoir fleurit... !  
Au ciel d__'Illumi__s... !_

_Sous le ciel d__'Illumis, c__oule un fleuve joyeux,  
Hum Hum...  
Il endort dans la nuit, __l__es clochards et les gueux..._

_Sous le ciel d__'Illumis, l__es oiseaux du __b__on Dieu,  
Hum Hum...  
Viennent du monde entier, __p__our bavarder entre eux..._

_Et le ciel d__'Illum__is,  
__À__ son secret pour lui...  
Depuis vingt __siècles,__ il est épris  
De notre __Île__ Saint-__Louis__... !  
Quand elle lui sourit, __i__l met son habit bleu,  
Hum Hum...  
Quand il pleut sur __'L__um__is, __c__'est qu'il est malheureux..._

_Quand il est trop jaloux, __d__e ses millions d'amants,  
Hum Hum...  
Il fait gronder sur eux, __s__on __tonner é__clatant..._

_Mais le ciel d__'Illum__is, __n__'est pas longtemps cruel,  
Hum Hum...  
Pour se __fait __pardonner, __i__l offre un arc-en-ciel... !  
_

" _Très magnifique, _" I said to myself, watching the sun set over Magenta Plaza. "There are people who would steal it away from us, though. Isn't that right, Agent Oak?"

Footsteps behind me paused. "Madame du Bois."

"Monsieur Woten Oak, field agent for the International Police," I considered. "You've been investigating my affairs rather deeply."

"Marguerite Linden du Bois did not have much of an identity until six years ago," M. Oak revealed as I turned my head to look at his rather handsome face. "All we know of her is her rather prolific output of academic letters, frankly radical... of course, the Kalos Champion must have written a lot in her spare time. Daisy Linden, was it?"

"...I see," I kept my expression calm, though my eyes darted to the shiny Absol behind him. "And? I do not think your partner and you bear such effort to find a Champion who has gone to ground."

"That matter, we'll leave it for the League," Woten dismissed. "It's the Morelle girl. You left her with my son."

"Donar Oak can take care of himself," I replied, turning my back to consider the lights of Illumis once more. "Besides, an outsider like you could never understand the situation."

"I understand that there are two factions after the Morelle girl, and possibly willing to kill to get her," Woten Oak snarled. "Tell me why shouldn't I get the International Police involved?"

"They are not a threat to the region," I reflected. "In the contrary, they are a vital part of Kalosian history. They are the curses against Kalos's invaders, and the healers of the land. They do not terrorise. They remain according to their own rules, and where they do not defy the set laws, even the government leaves them be. Do not strike a Combee hive if you cannot handle the Vespiquen within."

"How bad can they be?" he asked as smoke rose from far away to the skies of Lumiose.

I watched the smoke rising. The answer was so obvious that it need not be given, after all.

* * *

_Day 76: Today I set out to settle my affairs._

– _Marguerite Linden du Bois_

* * *

_**Well, hi again, and welcome to oir Dire. This time we'll be discussing two Trainer classes hardly touched upon: the Fairy Tale Girl and the Hex Maniac in Kalos. I've read some excellent Hex Maniac-centred fics, but none on Fairy Tale Girls. Which makes me wonder about it... anyway, I'll be presenting the significance of Fairy Tale Girls in a slightly different format to theorise about the significance of two supernaturally ominous female-oriented Trainer classes being present in Kalos.**_

_**Critiquez, s'il vous plaît!**_


	2. 1: Intérêts civil

_**Voir Dire**_

* * *

**1 : Intérêts civil**

_Day 77: The Kalosian judicial system was a complicated one. Suffice it to say that yes, Pokémon could become lawyers. That was not to say that all Pokémon were suited for the legal industry, seeing as not all humans were equally suited for the task either. Yet, I had full confidence in the abilities of Gilles and Sibyl Moreau, the pair of public defenders that was half human and half Meowstic. Even though I suspect that his heritage would catch up with him..._

* * *

I had made my career far faster than anyone should have, I realised. Using my undergraduate degree in medicine, I had enrolled for a postgraduate degree, discarding my medical credentials for those of the opposite kind. I had completed it in two years, and I had excelled somehow within the competitively backstabbing halls of the _École Normale Supérieure_. Of course, I also taught modules here and there. It was in one of these modules that I caught out Gilles Moreau as a pre-law student. He became my undergraduate teaching assistant, and I became his sponsor. He was a baby lawyer now...

It should not feel good, to have taken part in raising a baby Carvanha, and yet it did. Now I had a public defender in my corner, especially since Gilles was hardly as discreet as he had liked. Then again-

_Marguerite?_

"Hmm? Oh," I commented, looking down at the _chausson aux pommes_ that had crumbled into my _thé au Baie Prine_. "Such a waste. _Mes excuses_, Darkrai."

The Darkrai that hovered across me crunched into a _chausson_. His blue eyes wandered over the sight of Lumiose from the terrace of Café Bataille, watching the city gate that led out to Route 16, the Battle Institute, and Lumiose Station. Lumiose Station was crowded as always, supplying people just getting away from the casinos and resorts of Kiloude from the TMV into Lumiose. _What is that building? __The one with the Skiddo lingering outside._

I glanced sideways, somewhat frustrated that Donar was not up to listen. Then I berated myself for expecting the boy to stay around. "Lumiose Station. If we have time I could take us on a two-day trip to Kiloude City on train."

_Train?_

"A human conveyance," I explained. "It's similar to the monorail at Coumarine, except that it's a lot faster and over a longer distance. Kiloude is known more for warmer weather, which is always welcome."

_Warm weather?_

"Sunlight," I explained, shivering as a breeze blew past us down North Boulevard. "Warmer weather. Beaches where the waters are warm and teeming, where there's nothing freezing like here, when autumn's coming early."

_And you will not die?_

"At this stage, few things can kill me," I darkly commented.

_Aboard the ship... Marguerite, I do not want to face that again. Please promise me that, at least._

"I cannot guarantee that promise," I demurred. "If we start to protect the Morelle girl, I cannot even promise to save you from the pain, Darkrai. But, let us at least try together, because the pain could be worth it."

_Nothing in the world could be worth your pain, _Darkrai confessed, setting down his hot Occa brew.

I did not answer him. "Now, the situation. It is unfortunate that the arrest of Achillée Morelle was so well publicised, since this would only invite speculation on the family fortunes, with my selling short of Morelle Shipping via Holo Caster and an excellent stockbroker already netting me a fortune in Poké. Léa Morelle could become part of the Millepertuis, which means that it's in the best interests of the Raiponce to turn her towards _them_ as soon as possible. Or to remove another pawn from the board; also a distinct possibility in Tripartite politics. _La Maison de Raiponce _is the main enemy_. __La Maison de Millepertuis_ is a likely ally or enemy; an unknown quantity that could be grouped with the Raiponce, depending on their intentions over Léa Morelle. Friendly forces include us four, the public defender's office, the Lumiose Gym and the Pokémon Centres of Lumiose, amongst others. Special considerations must be given to the local Trainer population of the city, who may or may not help a bystander. Trainers are by far the wild card that may decide the situation."

"The mission," I started once I had assembled my chosen team at lunchtime, lunching at Café Pokémon-Amie, along Autumnal Avenue. "Our primary aim is to secure Léa Morelle from the Raiponce and Millepertuis, with minimal damage done to the infrastructure of Lumiose City by Fairy Tale Girls and Hex Maniacs. This shall be conducted over the next week starting today, because dragging the situation out is in neither party's interests."

"Execution relies on our timing," I continued, standing before the Prism Tower. "Seeing as Lumiose is the only safe haven at the moment, Lumiose is our home base. We must force the representatives of the Raiponce and Millepertuis here, instead of lower-level operatives. This means engaging all Raiponce and Millepertuis presence into a merger before defeat. To that end, Donar, Serena, Noël, Léa and I must locate and defeat a significant number of the Trainers currently entering the city."

"Support shall be present in the form of the Lumiose Gym, and the public defender's office," I delivered whilst driving in the back seat of the Lumi Cab Gilles was driving. "Pokémon Centres are too risky to visit, and visiting a hospital to hide from either House is a good way to escalate the situation such that the Lumiose, Lavarre and Anistar Gyms could most likely come to blows over the Trainers they govern. They will supply us information of Raiponce and Millepertuis movements within the city, known hideouts, bases and member profiles."

"So who's in command?" Gilles had the cheek to ask me.

"Command?" I snorted indelicately. "I am, of course. Darkrai and Altair shall be coordinating. After all, we are going up against two factions that have existed since the Century War, and not easily."

"Yeah well, you're planning this like a military attack."

I sighed. "They are warranted. It is close to a war."

* * *

What the hell Dr du Bois was up to I didn't know, but the orders she gave were pretty disturbing.

"There's this much danger now?" I asked Léa as we were walking towards Centrico Plaza from North Boulevard together. Lumiose was a city of walkers, much like any city of history was, so foot traffic was pretty heavy unless there was rain.

"So she said," Léa sighed. "But they did attack the café we were at in broad daylight. And the faster we get this over with, the faster I can persuade her to be my teacher."

Yeah, right, I thought. The Kalos Champion, tutor another kid in training Pokémon? Especially when part of her tragedy was in _becoming_ Champion?

"You're her student, right?" Léa asked me as we headed around Jaune Plaza to cut across to Vert Plaza, over the Pont de Bercy. "Don't you know what we're handling?"

"You think she tells me everything?" I defended. "This is the most information I've ever gotten from her. Do you know what it means? We're in really great danger. We should get the authorities."

Léa shivered. "But..."

"Not even Dr du Bois can do everything alone," I argued. "We need to find Officer Jenny. After all, what good is the police for if not to protect us?"

Around Vert Plaza was the Lumiose Police HQ, defined within the relatively cleaner South Boulevard and across the most valuable businesses in the city. We went in to see Officer Jenny.

"Bonjour!" Officer Jenny started. " _Bienvenue à La Sûreté __Régionale.__ Comment puis-je vous aider? _"

"Officer Jenny?" Léa asked. "M- My name is Léa Morelle... and, you see... I'd like to request police protection. I think some bad people are coming after me."

"Mademoiselle Morelle?" Officer Jenny looked at us with a forlorn look. "Ah, yes. There is a message for you."

My eyes must have been as big as dinner plates when the Officer handed the note over. It was printed using a pencil on office paper, but the message was clear:

_Mademoiselle Morelle:  
Salutations! We excuse ourselves as we elaborate that, while seeking police protection is indeed a viable move, we would not advise that. You see, we had known that you would have done that, and to ensure that you are kept away from undesirable dark elements that would turn you into our enemy, thus forcing us to end such a threat to us and fair Kalos at large, we have taken precautions.  
How else, do you think that we could track you down?  
Sincèrement,  
la raiponce._

Léa turned a slack-jawed expression towards me. "They knew..."

"Future Sight?" I rolled my eyes.

"About that..." we turned back to look at the receptionist Jenny, who still looked bored, but rather younger than usual. "You are Mademoiselle Morelle?"

"I am," Léa nodded quietly. "I have no idea why they're after me. Please, I need help!"

"So do we," Officer Jenny twirled a pencil about her gloved hands, that magically seemed smaller. "You know, the higher-ups are all sticks in the muds, and a lack of action would only make things worse. In that case, it should be fine for me to use my own judgement to assert a change, _n'est-ce pas?_ "

"O- Officer Jenny?" Léa stared as Jenny's face began to melt off, and it turned... pink. "No, she's a Ditto!"

"How rude," a voice, high-pitched and even more creepy seeing as it was coming from the goop itself, echoed. From the mess rose a pink hair-bow, blonde ringlets, a pink frilly dress, shiny shoes, and the Lolita in pink made a curtsy as her Ditto formed around her. "And I even took the time to knock out a Jenny and wait for you to arrive here..."

The both of us began backing away.

"Trousseau, Fairy Lock!" the girl ordered, as screens of shimmering light began to surround us. "Well, and I thought this was simple enough... I was waiting in the main headquarters to see if the Morelle girl was seeking custody. Killing you within the interrogation room would be a simple enough matter, and yet you came right into our hands."

"Killing...?" Léa's legs were shaking, nervous though determined as the blue flames of Will-O-Wisp danced around her fingers. "Try this! Will-O-Wisp!"

"Crafty Shield!" the girl ordered, as a floating keyring cast its spell, deflecting the blue flames by use of a fairly detailed shield of light.

_Klefki, the Key Ring Pokémon, _read my PokéDex. _It never lets go of a key that it likes, so people give it the keys to vaults and safes as a way to prevent crime._

"Heracross, I choose you!" I called, unleashing my Pokémon. "Brick Break on the shields!"

"It's useless," the girl chided as her Ditto curled up at her feet. "Fairy Lock prevents all opponents from moving from the battlefield. It's not just shields or anything like that. Trousseau, Play Rough."

The Klefki lashed out at Heracross, brutally knocking my Pokémon back.

"Heracross!" I cried, running to my fallen Pokémon.

"With that complete," the girl commented in satisfaction, looking to Léa, "please die."

Léa threw some more flames, flame that the Ditto defended against as it transformed into a copy of the Klefki and used Crafty Shield.

"Suif, Psychic," she told the Klefki-Ditto, whose eyes glowed and charged something so powerful, it knocked Léa back to the wall.

"Try to leave broken bones," the girl told her monster. "When the war starts, we can't have deserters running to the authorities."

"I choose you, Shelgon!" I called, unleashing my Shelgon. "Dragon Breath!"

The girl laughed, and her real Klefki jangled its keys with her as the move bathed her keyring in flame, and none of it burned. "Are you an idiot, _garçon_? Fairy-type Pokémon are immune to Dragon-type moves. In fact... to drive this point in, Play Rough!"

"Shelgon, Protect!" I tried to call, but the Klefki was too fast. It lashed out at Shelgon, sending him flying back to hit a wall... and strike through, and crash into the streets.

The girl clicked her tongue as the sprinklers overhead activated. "Hurry up and kill the girl. I want to find Imogen before the chickens get wise."

"You won't be doing that," another voice interrupted as the dark-haired witch strode into the regional police headquarters.

The blonde glared back, and for the first time, I realised that her eyes were flat and purple, without irises. "You..."

"Fairy Tale Girl Isabelle, your conduct is unbecoming of a Tripartite entity, not to mention as a member of the Raiponce," the dark-haired girl's hair began twitching, as if it was alive. "I presume that you coerced Fairy Tale Girl Imogen to abandon her guardianship of the Lavarre Nature Trail to follow you into Lumiose. Independent action has yet to be permitted amongst us."

"And what about it?" the now-identified Isabelle sneered. "You're Eos's sister... Achlys, was it? What are you doing here?"

"I saw you coming here," Achlys defended, even as behind her overshadowed as Alakazam, floating in a lotus position. "You know better than to aggravate the city's defenders, even if you're higher than your servitors in the field. It is on account of my sister that I do not terminate you here and now. Yield."

"And if I don't want to?" Isabelle mocked.

"Then you will face not only me, but also the wrath of the Lumiose Gym," Achlys flatly replied. "The mistress of the Raiponce would be hard-pressed to keep you quiet, and you shall be put down as the lunatic you truly are."

"Well, if put like that, from one of the Hex Maniacs I truly hate..." Isabelle drawled. "Trousseau."

The Klefki was tackling Léa, gashes forming where the Klefki scratched at her arms and face with its keys before it was thrown back by a Psychic and hit with a Will-O-Wisp.

Grey eyes gleaming like diamonds, Léa bared her teeth to show unnaturally sharp incisors. Blue flame curled around her hand like pets to a master, and she stood with arms relaxed and ready. "Look, what's your deal? I don't get what's going on, but I don't want to die."

"You don't want to die?" Isabelle cocked her head, before smiling in a way that still left her bug-eyes wide open. "That's impossible. Because I really want you to die. I'm getting bored watching such a static object. So I'm going to kill you, and see how the two Maîtresses des Maisons react. Your death here in the Eternal Light would be what is needed to make things fun."

"That will not be necessary," Achlys defended, her eyes shimmering as well in time with her Alakazam. "Psyshock."

Every Pokémon except the Klefki was immediately recalled, and Isabelle dodged out of the way of the semi-solid attack, reappearing at the door with a curtsy and a mocking laugh. "Even your sister and you together will not defeat me, Achlys. Neither does teeming up with the half-breed and the boy. I retreat today because I feel like it."

Achlys wordlessly glared as Isabelle turned to skip off, before a wave of mist appeared, swallowing her from view and she disappeared. Achlys then considered the ruined reception hall, the entrance, the hole which my Shelgon blew through. She linked arms with her Alakazam and Teleported away. Just as we were tackled with officers of Lumiose City's law enforcement.

Bad timing, it happens.

* * *

I sighed. I knew, somewhere, that the children did not trust me that much, but the authorities could only do so much. The witches of the Kalos region congregated at the Tripartite area – Hex Maniacs, Fairy Tale Girls, Psychics, and so on. The Ranger Union posted members there to restrict them for a reason, but it never worked. If the Lumiose police decided to pick a fight now, it would require League intervention, which would further escalate the tense situation between the supposedly non-partisan League, and the tradition-bound Raiponce and Millepertuis.

"You went to the authorities," I commented upon seeing Léa and Donar enter the terrace of the brasserie Le Nah.

Donar considered my table, the fact that I was dining with Darkrai, and ignored my question. "Where's Noël?"

"Monsieur Duval has excused himself from Lumiose City, moving towards Dendemille Town," I clarified. "He will return upon evolving his Eevee into a Glaceon."

"Now?!" Donar sighed tiredly. "Oh..."

"He is an experienced Trainer, and a rational man," I persuaded. "The events aboard the Azur must have shaken him. Only time will tell if he will continue our acquaintance, Donar."

"Yes, _professeur_," Léa grimly answered, crossing her arms.

I paused, staring at Léa. "You are not my student."

Léa shrank back, bowing her head. " _Mes excuses, docteur._"

They sat at my bidding, and a waiter came over wearing a double-breasted white tunic with sleeves rolled up.

"_Bonjour_!" he started. " _Je m'appelle Roger, et je serai votre serveur pour ce soir. __Vous avez choisi, monsieur, madame ?_ "

"The fixed price menu is rather good," I added as the children stared to me. "Don't you agree, Darkrai?"

Halfway through his _tourin d'ail doux_, Darkrai approximated a thumbs-up, to which the server gave an exaggerated bow. Around the table, my Pokémon gave more appreciation. Outdoor dining might cost a bit, but it was definitely worth it.

"I... don't have money," Léa confessed.

"Leader Amaro had to return to Coumarine quickly," I interceded. "He left some funds with the Sycamore Institute, and your care with Professor Sycamore in light of the situation. The Pokémon Centre is obviously not an option, since they have proven willing to defy national law to get to you, however ridiculous such a move would be. You'll be spending the night with the Institute more often than not, and I'll be arranging with his authority some discreet protection. That's why you'll be coming with me after dinner. Order now."

"What?" Donar blinked at the menu, and then at Roger. "Erm, I'll have... the fixed price."

"_Très bien,_" Roger answered. "_Madame_?"

"The fixed price as well," Léa answered nervously.

" _Oui_. _Deux tourins d'ail doux, deux __cassoulets, deux __plats de la charlotte aux __Baies Fraives__._" Roger counted. " _Vous désirez des boissons?_ "

"_L'eau du robinet_," Donar repeated. After the Coumarine scare, I suppose he was sticking to tap water. Bully for him. It reminded me of being a struggling student, once upon a time...

"_Pardon_?" Roger asked.

"_Donnez le garçon un carafe, je veux commander,_" I stated.

"_Oui, docteur,_" Roger scribbled something down. "_Vous désirez?_"

"_Une bouteille du vin rosé,_" I replied. I needed to get slightly more drunk, to face my past again.

To face the Looker Bureau for help.

* * *

_I am somewhat worried about the presence of Hex Maniacs and Fairy Tale Girls here. Something is definitely not right... _

– _Marguerite Linden du Bois_

* * *

_**Critiquez, s'il vous plaît!**_


	3. 2: Blesser

_**Savoir-faire – To Know and To Do**_

* * *

**2 : Blesser – To Hurt**

_Day 78: (AM) The Looker Bureau is certainly on the case, if only to provide information I already know but needed to upgrade. Essentia has remained active all these years, I see._

* * *

Léa Morelle was the complete opposite of Donar. Having sent the latter off on his own business to collect his fallen Shelgon from the Pokémon Centre, I almost missed the constant chatter the boy would resort to in filling the silence. She was quiet. Very quiet. I would have thought it part of her heritage save that even Ghost-type Pokémon would make more noise than her.

"You're releasing your Jellicent?" Léa finally asked.

"Jelly has identified her wish to return to the ocean of her birth and raise a family," I replied neutrally. "She will be serving her last week of service in an increasingly reduced capacity, at which I will send her Pokéball to Undella Bay, where she will be released back to the Unova oceans."

"You say it like she's your employee," Léa scowled.

"I provide food, training, and a chance at higher standards of living in exchange for her services in transport or battle," I reflected. "While I acknowledge the partnership bond between us, our relationship is really one of employer and employee at heart, and the menace knows it."

"So..." Léa paused. "What do you feed her?"

"My blood." And my life-force, but I forbore to add that last bit.

Léa froze, before walking in step as we passed by Rouge Plaza. "Okay... I can see why. So... where are we going?"

I turned down an alley, walking past the entrance to Sushi High Roller and then towards an office front. Léa followed me as I pushed the door open to an office space, filled with haphazard filing cabinets, plain office furniture that had seen quite a bit of wear and crashes, walls filled with spackling if you only knew where to look, and the doorbell tinkered above my head.

"_Bonjour, bienvenue au Bureau-_" the dark-skinned woman stopped combing the fur of her Espurr to stare at us. "Erm..."

"_Bon__soi__r_, Emma," I acknowledged as the Espurr leapt to his hind-paws. "Mimi."

"You know Mimi?" Emma looked confused, as she did when Xerosic lied about his plans for her sake.

I exhaled softly. I had not needed to don this identity for a while, and it showed how much the Kalos Champion had assimilated into my current identity. "Remember me, Emma? I'm Daisy Linden."

"Oh, right! Miss Daisy!" Emma brightened visibly. " _Salut! Comment ça va?_"

" _Ça va bien, merci,_ " I indicated Léa behind me. "_Je vous __présente__ Mad__am__e Léa Morelle._"

"_Bonjour_, " Léa nodded back.

"As Dr Marguerite Linden du Bois, I'm currently here as a client, representing by proxy of the Coumarine Gym Mademoiselle Morelle," I began. "Shall we?"

"Of course!" Emma went back to grab a notebook and pen, while Mimi's eyes began to glow, and behind us a kettle began to rise to pour out cups of tea into pre-prepared receptacles on a tray.

The tray floated over to the desk as Emma sank behind it, and we sat across her. Each of us took a cup.

"So, who's my client?" Emma asked.

"I am employing you in proxy of the Coumarine Gym," I replied. "Your charge will be Mademoiselle Morelle here."

Emma scribbled. "Mademoiselle, are you seeking protection?"

"Yes," Léa nodded decisively.

"From which parties?"

"The..." Léa swallowed. "I was attacked by a Fairy Tale Girl named Isabelle earlier today, and somehow a Hex Maniac called Achlys intervened to stop them. I don't know why."

Emma grimaced. "You've fallen into a bad part of the local factions, Mademoiselle. Well, I suppose this is expected of a hard-boiled detective... Mademoiselle, have you any reason for the Raiponce to pursue you?"

"Raiponce?" Léa shook her head.

"Outside of Lumiose City, the area marked by Routes 14, 15 and 16 is informally called the Tripartite," Emma explained. "This area is the traditional congregation of Fairy Tale Girls allied with the Maison de Raiponce, and Hex Maniacs under the Maison des Millepertuis. You are in grave danger, because either they wish to recruit you... or they wish to kill you."

Léa stiffened. "And the police...?"

"I have not met a single successful prosecution against either," Emma stoically related. "And, when pressed, the Raiponce and Millepertuis would rather eliminate those we arrest rather than allow them into police custody. However, they are not criminals, simply girls and women that have acted outside of the law for a very long time."

"I don't care about that!" Léa cried out. "I just want to continue on my Pokémon journey!"

"You certainly can," Emma nodded. "However, to continue that, you must travel through Route 14 towards Lavarre City, the Raiponce stronghold. Along the way, you could be kidnapped, brainwashed, and then made into a Fairy Tale Girl. The same event holds a chance of occurrence if you tried to escape along Route 16 towards Dendemille Town to Anistar City, the centre of Hex Maniac influence."

"No way..." Léa swallowed.

"As part of the Cent-Feuilles, that old alliance of Kalosian nobility, your choices and individual agency can and will be disregarded," I interjected. "Emma, the only chance will be to call _them _to Lumiose City to settle these matters, right?"

Emma considered for a long moment. "There is minimal negotiation outside of the Cent-Feuilles. Even the Maison d'Arc will be hard-pressed to intervene, and even the Champion might not be able to win this fight."

"Not without the backing of the Three Grand Ducal Houses."

"If you can gain the backing of the Luzerne, Mandragora and Coque-lourde... yes, it could be possible," Emma considered. "That's dangerous, though. One never knows what those families are planning."

"The other options?" I asked, more for Léa's sake than mine.

"Join one of them," Emma promptly answered. "If Léa Morelle is removed, most everything would return to normal. However, to correct the scales of power, the other House would most likely search for a girl with the same potential that she holds. A witch to balance out a witch, or so the saying goes."

"So... either we remove the pawn from the board, or we upset the entire board," I mused. "Understood. But, until then, we have need of this agency's premier agent."

"Mr Looker is not-"

"Mr Looker is not needed," I clicked my tongue. " _C'est un secret de __p__olichinelle que Essentia __travaille__ avec t__a __agence._ "

Emma scoffed. "I am the head detective-"

"Let us stop with the secrecy," I cut in, rising up and pulling a large A4-sized envelope out of my tote bag. More than once I had missed the convenience of a fixed housing around the Kalosian capital. "The standard rates of three thousand Poké per billed hour shall apply, and overheads are to be settled in the final tally. My signature is already on the contract that Leader Amaro had his attorney draw up for this express purpose. Mlle Morelle and I will be at the Magenta Plaza until eleven pm tonight. If Essentia does not turn up, then her answer is clear. Come along, Mademoiselle. Emma, _bonne soirée_."

"Erm, _au revoir_!" Léa nervously said to Emma, shaking her hand before following me out of the office. It was inappropriate and rude, but Emma would do her job better as Essentia here than as Emma.

Silence echoed in our path as we headed towards Rouge Plaza, before Léa spoke up. "I didn't see your Lucario."

"He had an appointment," I replied. "Altair is gainfully employed as a surgeon at the Lumiose Central Pokémon Centre."

Léa turned to stare, even as I continued walking. After a few moments, she had caught up alongside me and the followers that trailed in my wake.

"Pokémon can be surgeons?" Léa finally asked once we rounded Rouge Plaza and headed towards Autumnal Avenue.

"Is there anything that suggests otherwise?" I asked, a touch cold.

"No!" Léa shook her head. "It's just... how? Lucario don't have paws!"

"Flash Cannon," I answered. "Pokémon like Lucario and Medicham have specific aura capacities that react much like ECG or EEG, and can even serve as MRI in a pinch... basically, they're a walking monitoring station," I simplified as Léa's eyes turned confused. "Even without their unique Aura abilities, Lucario distinguish themselves by being part-Steel, rendering them immune to poisons and toxins encountered in the line of medical duty. And, Pokémon moves like Heal Bell and Heal Pulse might be obvious, but moves like Flash Cannon can actually serve in bloodless surgery if rendered spatially coherent enough in a tight space. Furthermore, the strong sense of justice that all Lucario carry in one form or another holds stronger than any Hippocratic Oath or medical ethics board. In any surgery with a Lucario as surgeon, a patient can rest easy in the knowledge that their treatment has been prescribed with most, if not all, variables accounted for."

"Never thought about it like that," Léa made a face as we stood by the street and watched. "The only doctors I see are Nurse Joys and Audinos and Wigglytuffs."

"Pokémon are for much more than battling," I pointed out as I crossed the street and she followed, the pair of us walking across the Vin River that flowed under Lumiose City to the Lumiose Central Pokémon Centre. "They have language, intelligence, hopes, ambitions, greeds, money problems, tragedies, identity crises, fears, doubts, wishes. Often, people are unable to realise this fact, and consider Pokémon as just another facet of life in this strange, strange world, with its strange, strange creatures. Just because a Pokémon is suited for battling does not mean that, as sentient beings, they do not turn their pursuits elsewhere."

"You love Pokémon, don't you?"

I stopped walking, just right outside of Lysandre's Café. The property of the former tycoon, inventor and crime boss had been seized by the Kalos League following Team Flare's fall, and it was still League property until the mess with Team Flare's prosecution was still sorted out. Its ramshackle façade was a good comparison to how I felt. "I don't understand your question."

Léa blushed. "I- I mean... you gave a lot of thought to Pokémon, not as friends or anything trite, but as... equals. Maybe even superiors."

"Well, of course they are," I answered, finally moving on. "Just because they cannot speak to us does not equate to misunderstanding us."

The Lumiose Central Pokémon Centre was a nostalgic sight, I reflected as I strolled in leisurely towards reception. "I'm looking for Doctor Pokémon Altair?"

The attending Nurse Joy nodded. "He's in the Surgery Department, Dr du Bois. It's so nice that you take some time out of your schedule to pick him up from catching up. How is your field research?"

"I have gained some insights, but nothing conclusive yet," I answered gently with a smile. "I presume that removing Altair has not affected operations much, Joëlle? It must take a while to get back into the swing of things, and I cannot thank you enough for arguing for his sake."

"Oh, yes," she agreed eagerly. "But, you know..." she leant forward. "... we have an Aura Guardian come in from Sinnoh! It looks like that his Lucario's got CTS, the poor guy."

"Aura Guardians?" I chuckled. "How ironic."

I found my way through a barrow of corridors, towards the office where the Pokémon Doctors conducted their work. There, I found my partner Lucario facing another Lucario, an electrode contraception set between them on the desk. Altair was calm; his patient was more high-strung than any Lucario should, and the tall, blue-shrouded Trainer next to the patient did not help.

_We'll just be conducting an electrodiagnostic test, _Altair soothed. _Well, it's actually an improvised form of electrodiagnosis, since the steel present in our bones prevents us taking an accurate reading. Instead of the speed of nerve impulses, I'll be measuring your aura with stimulus._

The other Lucario drew back, his front paws shaking slightly.

"Is this necessary?" the dark-haired Aura Guardian demanded.

Darkrai materialised from my shadow, and I absently grabbed my Gengar, named Mignon, before he could hit my face. _I have not seen the fighter at work before. __So he is a healer by trade too?_

"A surgeon," I grumbled, turning on one heel to find the Matron. "Who decided to put him in diagnostics?"

A Vileplume and an Alakazam dodged out of my warpath as I found the triage department and the half-asleep Audino sat back up as I faced her.

"Nurse Matron," I asked. "Why is Altair is diagnostics? I believe my Lucario is a surgeon by trade."

A few motions, and the Audino managed to get her point across; the patient wanted an actual Lucario as his primary doctor, no matter that it was a gross misallocation of resources. It helped that I had Darkrai as a translator.

"Thank you, Nurse Matron."

I waited outside with Léa, who looked around in fascination until the door opened, and the man and his Lucario walked out. "Thank you, Dr Altair."

_It is no problem,_ Altair replied, before turning to me. _Mistress, __you have come_.

"Altair," I replied. " _Je suis venu pour te chercher. __Vous avez dîné__?_"

"I'm Riley," the dark-haired man raised his hand. "Erm, _bonjour... je m'appelle Riley_?"

" _Merci_, Monsieur Riley," I replied, watching his face fall. "I am Dr Marguerite Linden du Bois. Dr Altair is my partner and ward."

"Ah..." Riley nodded. "Lucario and I were surprised when we got a Pokémon doctor. And he can communicate telepathically too! It's most impressive, what you've done."

"I have done nothing but foster an ambition that Altair had long held before he came with me," I answered.

"That is still impressive, that he can understand Kalosian and Standard," Riley ingratiated. "As an Aura Guardian, I have met many Pokémon, but so few work in direct communication with humans such as in medicine. It gives me hope that humans and Pokémon can truly coexist."

"Aura Guardians..." Léa hid behind me.

"Ah, and the girl is your companion, Dr du Bois?" Riley asked.

"Monsieur, Mademoiselle Léa Morelle," I motioned. "Aura Guardians are rare in this part of the world."

"Haha... there's a bit of historical bad blood," Riley chuckled. "A lot of the nurses gave me weird looks when I came here."

"Do you know the original name of this Centre?" I asked as we walked past the reception counter. On the wall hung a large painting, worth perhaps the cost of the whole building. " _L'__H__ôpital de Dame Jehanne_. "

The subject of the painting was arresting; she was luminous as she brandished the legendary Aegislash Durandal in her hand, the Royal Sword Pokémon alight with Sacred Sword. She rode on a Gogoat, and a Sylveon pawed by the ground, leading the charge. A Lucario was depicted leaping into the fray by her side. By the Gogoat there was a Malamar and a Barbaracle on either side; the legendary monsters of Kalosian coastal and mountain warfare united in a common cause. The greatest sign of divinely gifted inspiration, however, came in the rays of sunlight depicted to illuminate its seven subjects.

"It's a beautiful painting," Riley commented as he followed my line of sight to regard the painting. "What does it show?"

" _La __Luminosité__ Éternelle_, by Sannois de Lierre," Léa read the nameplate by the wall. "'Born Jehanne of Cromlac'h, Jeanne d'Arc claimed to have received divine inspiration from a Pokémon whose characteristics matched either Xerneas or Arceus. Jeanne would, at the lowest point of Kalosian history, lift the impossibly tight Siege of Lumiose, and thus change the destiny of the Kalos region. The painting shows Jeanne d'Arc and her erstwhile companions at the final charge of Notre Dame, where King Marcel Fleur-de-Lis would be crowned under her watch. Jeanne would later be betrayed, captured by the invaders, and subject to trial and burning at the stake by Aura Guardians of the Sinnoh region, who regarded her claims as heresy and blasphemy. Her piety proved herself when the fire burned out of control, burning her accusers to death in the subsequent conflagration with miraculously no other casualties.'"

"I would recommend that you stay away from northern Kalos, M. Riley, especially _les Monts_," I commented to Riley. "People have long memories, and nationalistic and religious sentiments often run high there. Good day."

Altair quietly followed me out of the Pokémon Centre, leaving Léa to apologise. _Did the Aura Guardian do something to annoy you?_

"No," I sighed tiredly in answer.

_You are not usually so blunt in your dislike as to resort to historical reasons._

"Thank you, Altair," I admitted that my Lucario knew me well. "It's just... this situation. An Aura Guardian here... it's painful."

Léa walked out, glaring at me. "Do you hate that guy or something? Why'd you leave him behind?"

"His presence complicates things," I commented as the monsieur himself walked out, not meeting my eyes. His Lucario escorted him out. "Especially with-"

I watched as the Aura Pokémon cocked his head, looking by the side, before diving for his Trainer.

"Mignon, Shadow Ball!"

My newest partner cast his attack, the sphere sending the flung car up and out, and definitely not hitting any of us as it crashed into the Vin River just below the Centre.

"Mignon, Shadow Ball!" I called as I unleashed another Pokéball for my Trevenant. "Altair, Bone Rush!"

"Fall back, Trousseau!" the Fairy Tale Girl that attacked us with a flung car commanded.

"Cyprès-" I commanded before a wall of smoke erupted around.

Altair dropped back down, dismissing the glowing bone that he had held. _What was that?_

"An opportunistic attack, with very little chance of success but also renders the attacker safe from prosecution otherwise," I considered, looking down to Léa. "The question should be, who's the target?"

Léa shook her head. "She was trying to kill me by car? I thought you said that they wanted to recruit me!"

"Recruit you?" M. Riley blinked in shock, the glow of aura on his hands fading. "What's going on?"

"Considering your probably enhanced constitution, the Raiponce was possibly gambling on you surviving the crash, and then kidnapping your injured self from the site once M. Riley and I were dead," I considered, patting Mignon on the head. "Not that they would escape."

Under my feet, the portal of Phantom Force opened, and a Klefki dropped through up, with its well-dressed Trainer. The Fairy Tale Girl scowled as Altair held a Bone Rush to her Klefki, but said nothing.

" _Comment vous vous __appelez__?_" I asked her.

She scowled, but stared from where my Lucario held her Klefki hostage. "Isabelle," she admitted grudgingly.

"That's the Fairy Tale Girl at the police headquarters!" Léa pointed at her.

"It's rude to point," I admonished as Cyprès returned to my side. "Mademoiselle Isabelle, are you in any position to contact the Raiponce elders?"

"As if you have any right to talk to them," Isabelle snarled.

"I'll take that as a no," I considered, bringing out my Holo Caster to type out a quick message. "Monsieur, go back in and ask Nurse Joy to being reinforcements, _s'il vous plaît_. It appears Mademoiselle Isabelle shall be experiencing the hospitality of Illumis for a while longer, especially in the impersonation of an officer."

"How did you know that I would run?" Isabelle demanded.

"I guessed," I blandly answered, feeling my side. "Now-"

Whips of vine tangled around Léa, who screamed. M. Riley turned around at his Lucario's bark, dodging the vines. The older Lucario gave a growl, one echoed by his doctor.

"What are you doing?" Isabelle scoffed as I held up the bright orange gun I kept at my side to her face.

"This is a Very flare gun," I informed her. "It holds six shots of magnesium rounds, mixed with strontium powder. This will burn at a temperature of three thousand three hundred degrees Kelvin, which means that, assuming that you survive, you will suffer third-degree burns at minimum for the rest of your life. Given that this is composed of metal, heavy metal poisoning is also a risk, which would terminate any Fairy influence in your body as a result of your Fairy-type Pokémon or your power. Call your associate off, or I fire."

"If I don't want to?" Isabelle taunted. "Imogen, that's an Aura Guardian. He'll become a thorn in our side if we don't do anything. Don't hold back."

"Really?" Another feminine giggle shrilly echoed. "Do you think the Mistress would be happy if we brought him back?"

"Then bring him," Isabelle commented, still cheery. "Bring the Morelle girl as well, and tell the Mistress that I was killed by a woman with a flare gun. If you can bear the full fury of the Raiponce upon your head, then do it."

My lips parted. In the time I would fire, the other Fairy Tale Girl would get away with the Aura Guardian and Léa Morelle. If I turned, then I was vulnerable to attack if she called another Pokémon, one that Cyprès might not be able to handle.

Mignon screeched, spitting a wad of sludge at Isabelle. She reared back with a cry.

"Oh, good idea," I blinked down at Mignon. I was so used to acting alone, it took a while for me to recall why Gengar was one of my favourite Pokémon prior to owning one. "Altair, smack her Klefki."

The bone dropped with a thud and a ring of keys, while my Lucario smirked.

"Lucario, Metal Sound!" Riley called, my ears ringing as the Lucario began howling.

Blue fire gathered as Léa burned herself loose. She winced, before she conjured another bout of St Elmo's fire to circle her. The vines retreated, back to a floating red Floette who was wincing along with its Trainer, another Fairy Tale Girl.

I turned my head slightly.

With one flick of her finger, Léa's fire turned to surround the girl named Imogen as Léa called out her Gourgeist, the one I had accidentally evolved by the power running in my veins. It helped, at least, by adding to her intimidation factor.

At that moment, I reflected that Léa Morelle was more of a Hex Maniac than she realises.

"Monsieur?" I asked.

Riley nodded, running back into the Pokémon Centre as I picked up the Klefki, flicking through the keys attached to its body. Its Trainer was still wiping muck from her eyes when the Centre's Pangoro guards came out with steel cuffs that they used on her and her accomplices.

I managed to extricate from it an important-looking key that bore the symbol of the Kalos Bank. I handed the Klefki over, concealing the key in my palm. The key puzzled me, to some extent. Why would anyone wish to provoke the Raiponce and Millepertuis; the reason was lost to me.

"Miss?" M. Riley had come out again, now with his arms crossed. "Are you in danger? Who was that girl? Is she part of any team?"

"I wish," I reflected sadly, looking at the key in my palm. "It would be much easier."

* * *

In over two months travelling incognito with the disappeared Kalos Champion SAS Daisy Linden aka Dr Marguerite Linden du Bois, I nearly always ate well. For some reason, Dr du Bois made outdoor cooking look and taste like something in a five-star restaurant, or a three-Michelin menu. The only time I didn't eat well was in the Ambrette Hotel with Clauncher bisque. The accommodations left something to be desired; Dr du Bois was really fond of camping, and more than once in the midst of a rainstorm or in the caves leading from Camphrier Town to Cyllage City. I would have spent the night in the Pokémon Centre if it weren't for Professor Sycamore telling me to take Dr du Bois's quarters in the Sycamore Institute and not listening to my complaints.

Thus, in the very Spartan apartment Dr du Bois was entitled to at the lab, I was wishing that she wasn't going to kill me for barging into, for all intents and purposes, her apartment, once she appeared.

Shelgon was still nursing a wounded pride, Fletchinder even more so. Frogadier looked disappointed somewhat, and I had to reassure them that no, they hadn't failed anything. Heracross was only disappointed that I hadn't called on him, and Ivysaur was ambivalent, though worried.

I sat alone in the one-room apartment. There was a knock on the door. Outside, a flash swept through, followed by a boom of thunder-

I was freaking myself out. I opened the door... slowly.

" _Un colis pour le docteur du Bois?_" the courier outside blinked.

"Ye- er, _oui_," I answered. " _Je suis son assistant__e__._ "

" _Inscrivez-vous ici, s'il vous plaît._ " I understood only half the sentence, but the clipboard was obvious enough. I scribbled, he took it and left, and I was left with the brown paper package. What it contained, I did not know and did not care to.

I typed on my Holo Caster, waiting for her to pick up. One ring, two rings, three-

Her face flashed up, blue eyes that used to be hidden with green contact lenses flashing with palpable irritation. "_Bonsoir_, Donar."

"Hi, Dr du Bois," I answered. "I'm at your apartment, Professor Sycamore told me to stay here for the night. Also, a package arrived for you."

"A package?" She blinked. "Wait, my apartment? Who's the sender?"

I looked at the package. "Erm... a Mr Gilles Moreau, Résidence 'Le Forêt' Bat. 1 Esc. 2, 34 Place Jaune, 75678 Illumis?" I blinked in puzzlement.

"Fair enough," she commented. "Open it and tell me what's inside."

I tore the brown paper quickly, blinking at the fanning of plastic files. "What? It's... files."

"Okay," Dr du Bois drew a deep breath. "Donar, those files are to be kept safe. I am making another appointment with Mademoiselle Morelle, and it is essential to her safety and yours that you keep those files."

"Yes, Dr du Bois."

"Also, how was your Gym match?"

I blinked. "What?"

"You heard me."

I considered the question for a bit. "It went fine. I got the Voltage Badge."

"Already?" she blinked. "That is good."

"Why? What happened?"

"According to Mlle Morelle, I came across the Fairy Tale Girl who accosted you today and her accomplice," Dr du Bois said with the same sangfroid she held to everything. "It looks like our departure from Lumiose might be earlier than expected."

"Our departure?" I felt my eyebrows rising.

"I arrested her," Dr du Bois added. "Of course, it also creates quite the situation for us, thankfully smoothed over by her mental instability. But it also means that Lumiose City would become a hotbed of Fairy Tale Girls looking for us once word of this gets out."

"Yes, Doctor," I nodded quickly, feeling my heart beating fast. "We'll set out to Lavarre by the day after."

"_Bonne soirée, Donar._" Dr du Bois hung up, leaving me to slump back against a tiny camp-bed set inside the apartment, staring out where the skies of Lumiose were about to break open.

* * *

_Moments like this make me wonder, the standards for Fairy Tale Girls have really fallen nowadays._

– _Marguerite Linden du Bois_

* * *

_**It was not an accident that I wrote Altair's background as a surgeon. His medical background was influenced partly by ChloboShaka's Carry On, Blissey. I wanted a Pokémon whose medical beneficence is not always obvious or considered, and a Lucario was about the furthest one could get from a Squishy Medic. Also, Lucario can learn Heal Pulse.**_

_**Now if only it could learn something for status conditions as well...**_

_**Critiquez, s'il vous plaît!**_


End file.
